Amon Amarth

Amon Amarth is a Viking-themed melodic death metal band from Tumba, Sweden, founded in 1988 (current name since 1992), and named after an alternative name for Mount Doom, a location in J. R. R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth. As of 2009, the band is signed with Metal Blade Records and has released seven studio albums, one EP, one DVD, and seven music videos.

Formed under the name Scum in 1988, the band was originally a grindcore group formed by Paul “Themgoroth” Mäkitalo (Dark Funeral) on vocals, Olavi Mikkonen on guitar, and Ted Lundström on bass. When Johan Hegg joined the band, their music changed towards melodic death metal. After a 1991 demo, they changed the band’s name to Amon Amarth in 1992, then recorded their first demo Thor Arise under the name in 1993 following another demo in 1994 entitled The Arrival of the Fimbul Winter. In 1996, they signed with Pulverised Records, on which they released their first MCD, Sorrow Throughout the Nine Worlds, which sold 6000 copies.